U.S. patent number 10,119,875 [Application Number 15/181,975] was granted by the patent office on 2018-11-06 for pressure sensor device with a mems piezoresistive element attached to an in-circuit ceramic board.
This patent grant is currently assigned to Continental Automotive Systems, Inc.. The grantee listed for this patent is Continental Automotive Systems, Inc.. Invention is credited to Jen-Huang Albert Chiou, Benjamin C. Lin, Eric Matthew Vine.
United States Patent |
10,119,875 |
Chiou , et al. |
November 6, 2018 |
Pressure sensor device with a MEMS piezoresistive element attached
to an in-circuit ceramic board
Abstract
A pressure sensor device with a MEMS piezoresistive pressure
sensing element attached to an in-circuit ceramic board comprises a
monolithic ceramic circuit board formed by firing multiple layers
of ceramic together. The bottom side of the circuit board has a
cavity, which extends through layers of material from the ceramic
circuit board is formed. A ceramic diaphragm, which is one of the
layers, has a peripheral edge. The diaphragm's thickness enables
the diaphragm bounded by the edge to deflect responsive to applied
pressure. A MEMS piezoresistive pressure sensing element attached
to the top side of the ceramic circuit board generates an output
signal responsive to deflection of the ceramic diaphragm. A conduit
carrying a pressurized fluid (liquid or gas) can be attached
directly to the ceramic circuit board using a seal on the bottom of
the ceramic circuit board, which surrounds the opening of the
cavity through the bottom.
Inventors: |
Chiou; Jen-Huang Albert
(Libertyville, IL), Lin; Benjamin C. (Barrington, IL),
Vine; Eric Matthew (Chicago, IL) |
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Continental Automotive Systems, Inc. |
Auburn Hills |
MI |
US |
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Assignee: |
Continental Automotive Systems,
Inc. (Auburn Hills, MI)
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Family
ID: |
54063043 |
Appl.
No.: |
15/181,975 |
Filed: |
June 14, 2016 |
Prior Publication Data
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Document
Identifier |
Publication Date |
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US 20160377496 A1 |
Dec 29, 2016 |
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Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
Issue Date |
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62185823 |
Jun 29, 2015 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G01L
19/0076 (20130101); G01L 19/04 (20130101); G01L
9/008 (20130101); G01B 7/16 (20130101); G01L
19/0007 (20130101); G01L 9/0055 (20130101); G01L
9/0044 (20130101); G01L 19/148 (20130101); H01L
2224/48137 (20130101); H01L 2224/48091 (20130101); H01L
2224/73265 (20130101); H01L 2224/48091 (20130101); H01L
2924/00014 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
G01L
19/04 (20060101); G01L 9/00 (20060101); G01L
19/00 (20060101); G01L 19/14 (20060101); G01B
7/16 (20060101) |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Foreign Patent Documents
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102007052364 |
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May 2009 |
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DE |
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2394055 |
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Apr 2004 |
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GB |
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02/061383 |
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Aug 2002 |
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WO |
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2011/104860 |
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Sep 2011 |
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WO |
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Other References
International Search Report and Written Opinion dated Sep. 13, 2016
from corresponding International Patent Application No.
PCT/US2016/037656. cited by applicant .
English J M et al., "Wireless micromachined ceramic pressure
sensors", Twelfth IEEE International conference, Orlanda, FL, Jan.
17-21, 1999, pp. 511-516, XP010321771, ISBN: 978-0-7803-5195-3.
cited by applicant .
Wilcox D L et al., "The Multilayer Ceramic Integrated Circuit
(MCIC) Technology: Opportunities and Challenges" Proceedings of the
Internatinal Symposium on Microelectronics, XX, XX, Jan. 1, 1997,
pp. 17-23, XP000862942. cited by applicant .
Machine Translation of WO2011/104860A1, by ThomsonReuters. cited by
applicant.
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Primary Examiner: Macchiarolo; Peter
Assistant Examiner: Jenkins; Jermaine
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. A MEMS piezoresistive pressure sensor device comprising: a
ceramic circuit board having a top side and a bottom side, the
bottom side having a cavity, which extends through the ceramic
circuit board to a ceramic diaphragm having a peripheral edge, the
ceramic diaphragm having a thickness selected to enable the ceramic
diaphragm to deflect responsive to an applied pressure; a MEMS
piezoresistive pressure sensing element attached to the top side of
the ceramic diaphragm by a layer of glass frit, the MEMS
piezoresistive pressure sensing element being substantially
centered over the ceramic diaphragm peripheral edge, the MEMS
piezoresistive pressure sensing element configured to generate an
output signal responsive to deflection of the ceramic
diaphragm.
2. The pressure sensor device of claim 1, further comprising a
metal seal coupled to the bottom side of the ceramic circuit board
and surrounding the cavity where the cavity meets the bottom
side.
3. The pressure sensor device of claim 1, further comprising an
integrated circuit attached to the top side of the ceramic circuit
board and located outside the perimeter of the diaphragm.
4. The pressure sensor device of claim 1, further comprising an
integrated circuit attached to the top side of the ceramic circuit
board and located whereby at least part of the integrated circuit
is within the perimeter of the diaphragm.
5. The pressure sensor device of claim 1, further comprising an
adhesive between the MEMS piezoresistive pressure element and the
top side of the ceramic circuit board.
6. The pressure sensor device of claim 1, wherein the ceramic
circuit board further comprises at least one capacitor, which is
internal to the ceramic circuit board, between the top and bottom
surfaces, the at least one capacitor being electrically coupled to
the integrated circuit.
7. The pressure sensor device of claim 1, further comprising at
least one capacitor attached to the top surface, the at least one
capacitor being electrically coupled to the integrated circuit.
8. The pressure sensor device of claim 1, wherein the ceramic
circuit board comprises a monolithic ceramic layer, formed from a
first plurality of layers of low-temperature co-fired ceramics.
9. The pressure sensor device of claim 1, wherein the ceramic
circuit board comprises a monolithic ceramic layer, formed from a
first plurality of layers of high-temperature co-fired
ceramics.
10. The pressure sensor device of claim 1, further comprising a
plurality of bond pads on the top side of the ceramic circuit
board.
11. The pressure sensor device of claim 1, further comprising a
conduit, configured to carry a pressurized fluid, the conduit
having a port, which extends into the ceramic cavity and applies a
pressurized fluid against the diaphragm.
12. The pressure sensor device of claim 11, wherein the conduit is
metal.
13. The pressure sensor device of claim 11, further comprising an
adhesive seal between the port and the cavity.
14. The pressure sensor device of claim 13, wherein the adhesive
seal is a solder.
15. The pressure sensor device of claim 1, wherein the ceramic
diaphragm is circular.
16. The pressure sensor device of claim 1, wherein the ceramic
diaphragm is rectangular.
Description
BACKGROUND
FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional diagram of a prior art pressure sensor
device 100. A metal port 102 has an exterior surface 104, threaded
106 to allow the port 102 to be attached to an orifice carrying a
pressurized fluid.
A cavity 108 extends upwardly through the port 102 and is "closed"
at a top side 116 by a thinned area or portion 110, above which is
a conventional MEMS silicon pressure sensing element 112. Prior art
MEMS silicon pressure sensing elements are disclosed in U.S. Pat.
No. 6,427,539 entitled, "Strain gauge," U.S. Pat. No. 8,302,483
entitled, "Robust design of high pressure sensor device," and U.S.
Pat. No. 8,171,800 entitled, "Differential pressure sensor using
dual backside absolute pressure sensing," to name a few, the
contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.
The thinned portion 110 has a thickness that is about 0.3 mm to
about 0.4 mm. It acts as a diaphragm, deflecting upwardly and
downwardly responsive to changes in the pressure of a fluid in the
cavity 108.
The thinned portion 110 is generally planar. The cavity 108 below
the thinned portion 110 is preferably a tube or tubular and
encircles or encloses a perimeter 114, which is provided with a
radius where the wall defining the tubular cavity 108 meets the
thinned portion 110 to reduce stress concentrations.
The MEMS silicon pressure sensing element 112 is essentially
centered above the perimeter 114. The MEMS silicon pressure sensing
element 112 is attached to the top 116 of the port 102 by a glass
frit 118. The glass frit 118 bonds or attaches the MEMS pressure
sensing element 112 to the top surface 116 such that deflection of
the thinned area 110 causes the MEMS silicon pressure sensing
element to change its size and shape. When the size and shape of
the piezoresistors embedded in the sensing element 112 changes,
their resistance values also change, causing an output voltage from
the sensing element 112 to change proportionately to the deflection
of the thinned area 110.
The port 102 is surrounded by a plastic spacer 120, on top of which
is a conventional printed circuit board (PCB) 122. The PCB 122 is
attached to the spacer 120 by an adhesive 124. The PCB 122 supports
an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) 130.
On the left side of FIG. 1, the spacer 120 and PCB 122 support a
chip capacitor 126, which is attached to the PCB 122 by an
electrically conductive adhesive 127. Thin bond wires 128 extend
between the MEMS pressure sensing element 112 and the ASIC 130.
Similarly, a second set of bond wires 132 extend between the ASIC
130 and bond pads 134 on the top surface of the PCB 122.
The metal from which the port 102 is made and the material from
which the PCB 122 is made, have significantly different
coefficients of thermal expansion. (CTE). The coefficients of
thermal expansion of the glass frit 118 and MEMS pressure sensing
element 112 are also significantly different from the coefficient
of thermal expansion for the metal port 102. The mismatches between
the CTEs create thermally-induced stresses and voltage noise. In
addition to thermally-induced stresses and voltage noise, a
threaded connection is difficult to seal hermetically. Reducing or
eliminating the mismatch between coefficients of thermal expansions
and simplifying the packaging would be an improvement over the
prior art.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES
FIG. 1 is a cross-section of a prior art pressure sensing
device;
FIG. 2A is a cross-section of a first embodiment of a pressure
sensor device with a MEMS piezoresistive element attached to an
in-circuit ceramic board;
FIG. 2B is a top view of the pressure sensor device shown in FIG.
2A;
FIG. 3A is a cross-section of a second embodiment of a pressure
sensor device with a MEMS piezoresistive element attached to an
in-circuit ceramic board;
FIG. 3B is a top view of the pressure sensor device shown in FIG.
3A;
FIG. 4A is a topside perspective view of the pressure sensor device
shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B;
FIG. 4B is a backside perspective view of the pressure sensor
device shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B;
FIG. 5 depicts the pressure sensor device of FIGS. 2A and 2B
attached to a conduit carrying a pressurized fluid;
FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of the pressure sensor device
shown in FIG. 5; and
FIG. 7 is a bottom view of the pressure sensor device shown in
FIGS. 3A and 3B.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
FIG. 2A is a cross-sectional view of a pressure sensor device 200,
with a MEMS piezoresistive element attached to an in-circuit
ceramic circuit board 202. FIG. 2B is a top view of the same
pressure sensor device 200.
The pressure sensor device 200 comprises the ceramic circuit board
202 having a top side 204 and a bottom side 206. As can be seen in
FIG. 2A, a cavity 208 in the bottom side 206 extends "upwardly" to
a thinned area or region 210. The location and boundary of the
cavity 208 in the ceramic circuit board 202, and the
cross-sectional shape of the cavity 208 is demarcated in FIG. 2B by
a circle drawn by dashed lines identified by reference numeral 211,
which also identify the perimeter or periphery of the thinned area
210.
The thinned area 210 deflects responsive to pressure changes in the
cavity 208 and thus behaves as a diaphragm. The thinned area 210 is
therefore considered herein to be a diaphragm 210.
The cavity 208 is essentially a tube that is open on one end, i.e.,
at the bottom side 206 of the ceramic circuit board 202, and which
extends part way through the ceramic circuit board 202 to the
thinned area 210. The diaphragm 210 of the embodiment shown in
FIGS. 2A and 2B is thus circular or substantially circular. The
perimeter or peripheral edge of the diaphragm 210 is best seen in
FIG. 2B and is identified by reference numeral 211.
Pressure is applied to the bottom side 213 of the diaphragm 210 by
fluid provided into the cavity 208 by a conduit shown in cross
section in FIG. 5, which causes the diaphragm 210 to deflect.
Deflections of the diaphragm 210 cause a MEMS silicon pressure
sensing element 218, attached to the top side 204 of the ceramic
circuit board 202 by a glass frit 220 and located above the
perimeter 211, to change an output voltage responsive to diaphragm
deflection. The MEMS pressure sensing element 218 is substantially
centered over the perimeter 211 of the diaphragm 210.
An application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) 221 is attached
to the top side 204 of the ceramic circuit board 202 by an adhesive
222, either a soft mount or a hard mount. The ASIC 220 communicates
with the MEMS element 218, i.e., sends electrical signals to and
receives electrical signals from the MEMS element 218, through bond
wires 224.
Signals to and from the ASIC 221 are filtered by capacitors 226
attached to conductive bond pads 228A-228C by an electrically
conductive adhesive (ECA) or solder 230. The capacitors 226 are
thus electrically coupled to the ASIC 221. Bond wires 225
electrically interconnect the ASIC 221 to the bond pads 228A-C and
connect the ASIC 221 to the capacitors 226 for electromagnetic
control (EMC).
FIG. 3A is a cross-sectional view of a second embodiment of a
pressure sensor device 300 with a MEMS piezoresistive element 312
attached to an in-circuit ceramic board 304. FIG. 3B is a top view
of the pressure sensor device 300.
The device 300 shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B differs from the embodiment
shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B by the location of filter capacitors. In
FIGS. 3A and 3B, filter capacitors 302 are located inside the
ceramic circuit board 304 rather than on an exterior surface as
shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B. In addition to the location of the filter
capacitors, the cross-sectional shape of the cavity 308 of the
pressure sensor device 200 shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B is square
instead of circular.
A substantially square-shaped seal 330 in FIG. 3A, preferably made
of tungsten or molybdenum for high temperature co-fired ceramic
(HTCC) can also be made of gold, silver or aluminum for low
temperature co-fired ceramic (LTCC). The seal 330 is screen-printed
onto the bottom side 306 of the ceramic circuit board 304
completely around the substantially square-shaped opening into the
cavity 308. The square metal seal 330 can be soldered on a metal
port for hermetic sealing.
As explained below, the cavity 308 and the square seal 330 are
sized, shaped and arranged to receive a conduit that carries a
pressurized fluid. An adhesive, such as solder, placed between the
square seal 330 and such a conduit acts as a sealant. The square
seal 330 is thus considered to be a hermetic soldered seal, which
is a device that prevents pressurized fluid or fuel leakage.
Pressurized fluid can thus be provided into the cavity 308, which
will cause a thinned area 310, i.e., an area at "top" of the cavity
referred to herein as a diaphragm, to deflect. Deflection of the
diaphragm 310 thus causes a MEMS pressure sensing element 312 to
produce an output voltage, which changes in magnitude responsive to
deflection of the diaphragm 310.
As can be seen in FIG. 4A, internal capacitors 302 are actually
embedded in the ceramic circuit board 304. The internal capacitors
302 are attached to conductive traces 324 that are connected to
conductive vias 314, which extend downwardly from the top surface
316 of the ceramic circuit board 304 where the conductive vias are
connected to bond pads 318. As can be seen in FIG. 3A, flexible
bond wires 320 extend between an application-specific integrated
circuit (ASIC) 322 on the top surface 316 and the bond pads 318.
Bond wires 340 electrically interconnect the MEMS 312 to the ASIC
322.
On the left side of FIG. 4A, the cavity 308 is shown extending from
the bottom surface 326 of the ceramic circuit board 304. The bottom
surface 326 or "backside" of the ceramic circuit board 304 is
depicted in FIG. 4B. Together, FIGS. 4A and 4B depict how the
internal capacitors 302 are connected to the conductive traces 324,
conductive vias 314 and the bond pads 318 on the top surface 316,
which provide connections for input voltage, ground, and output
voltage. The embodiment of the pressure sensor device 300 shown in
FIGS. 3A and 3B additionally differs from the embodiment shown in
FIGS. 2A and 2B by the location of the ASIC 322. In FIGS. 3A and
3B, the ASIC 322 is located on the top surface 316 such that at
least a portion of the ASIC is inside a perimeter 311 of the
diaphragm 310 whereas in FIGS. 2A and 2B, the ASIC is outside the
perimeter of the diaphragm.
The ceramic circuit board in FIGS. 2A and 2B and the ceramic
circuit board shown in 3A and 3B are both formed from several thin
layers of ceramic. The layers of ceramic that are stacked on top of
each other are omitted from FIGS. 2A and 2B for clarity but are
clearly identified in FIG. 3A by reference numerals 328A-F. In
embodiments of the sensors shown in FIGS. 2A, 2B, 3A and 3B, a
monolithic ceramic circuit board is formed from multiple layers of
a low temperature co-fired ceramic (LTCC). In other embodiments,
the monolithic ceramic circuit board is formed from multiple layers
of high temperature co-fired ceramic (HTCC).
As can be seen in FIG. 3A, lower layers 328B-F have openings in
them, square or circular, which when stacked on top of each other
form the cavities described above. The top layer 328A, however,
does not have an opening and thus comprises the diaphragms
described above.
Regardless of whether the ceramic is a low temperature or high
temperature fired ceramic, and regardless of the shape of the
openings in the layers, the multiple layers of ceramic material are
heated to a temperature at which the various layers fuse together
and become a single monolithic ceramic layer. In the embodiment
shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B, the internal capacitors 302 are embedded
within an opening of one or more layers 328.
FIG. 5 shows the attachment of the pressure sensor device 200 shown
in FIGS. 2A and 2B to a conduit 600, configured to carry a
pressurized fluid 602. Since the pressure sensor device 200 has a
circular cavity 208, the conduit 600 has a substantially circular
protrusion 608 inside the cavity 208 opening from the bottom side
206 of the ceramic circuit board 202.
A conduit port 604, which extends into the cavity 208 of the
pressure sensor device 200, carries pressurized fluid 602 into the
cavity 208 and against the ceramic diaphragm 210. The metal ring
240 located in either a recess formed in the or on the surface of
the bottom side 206 of the ceramic circuit board 202 is sealed and
bonded to the port 604 by either an adhesive or solder 610.
Additionally, metallization areas 242 on the perimeter of ceramic
circuit board 202 allow solder 612 for attachment to metal conduit
600 for additional support.
FIG. 6, a plan view 6-6 of the pressure sensor device 200 shown in
FIG. 5, taken through section lines 6-6. FIG. 6 thus shows the
metal ring 240, the metallization areas 242, the solders 610 and
612, the circular protrusion 608, and portion of the backside 213
of the diaphragm 210. The cavity 208 of the first embodiment 200 is
surrounded by the metal ring 240. Since the cross-section of the
cavity 208 is circular, the cavity 208 is considered to be a
cylinder or tube.
The embodiment shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B has a cavity 308 with a
cross-section that is square or substantially square. The seal 330
around the cavity's opening 308 in the bottom side 306 of the
ceramic circuit board 304 is thus picture frame-shaped,
substantially as shown in FIG. 7.
The prior art shown in FIG. 1 attaches a MEMS piezoresistive
pressure sensing element made of silicon onto a metal port, which
creates higher thermal mismatch between the silicon and the metal.
Unlike prior art pressure sensor devices, the pressure sensor
devices shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B and FIGS. 3A and 3B attach a MEMS
piezoresistive pressure sensing element onto a ceramic circuit
board, which has lower thermal mismatch between the silicon and the
ceramic. In addition to the performance improvement, the invention
simplifies the packaging by integrating a metal port and a
conventional printed circuit board (PCB) in the prior art into a
single in-circuit ceramic board. The packaging size is thus further
reduced.
The foregoing description is for purposes of illustration only. The
true scope of the invention is set forth in the following
claims.
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